Striving to improve understanding of signaling in the nervous system
Membrane proteins are the primary target of many drugs. These proteins play a key role in regulating the body’s functions and communication between cells. Professor Erik Lindahl is developing new methods to study these proteins in situ in tissue.
Erik Lindahl. Photo: Magnus Bergström/KAW
Membrane proteins occur in and on cell membranes. Lindahl is especially interested in membrane proteins known as ion channels, which can be likened to miniature doors that allow charged particles in and out of cells. Opening and closing these ‘doors’ control everything from cells’ temperature to electrical charge. The channels are also affected by other molecules present in membranes. This results in a complex interaction which means that the same type of ion channel can have different functions depending on where it is found in the body.
“We want to improve understanding of the function of these proteins, so it’s not enough to study them in isolated form. We need to examine them in situ in cell membranes and tissue. The problem is that there aren’t any methods to do this yet,” says Lindahl, professor at Stockholm University.
Our research is focused on understanding the doors and windows of our cells in the form of membrane proteins in general, and in particular the functions of ion channels and pumps that transport ions to make our nervous system work.